An agreement is signed with the USA resolving the conflict arising from the Corfu Incident The gold looted by the SS is being returned 1,574 kilograms held up for 45 years TIRANA - Part of the quantity of gold looted from its Bank by the German Nazis during the Second World War, and which thereafter remained frozen for many years in the vaults of the Bank of England, is to be returned to Albania. In an agreement signed in Tirana by US Ambassador Lake and Albanian Deputy Prime Minister Vrioni, the USA agreed to the return to Albania of 1,574 kilograms of pure gold, estimated to be worth 13 million dollars. An agreement of this kind, on the same issue, is expected to be signed soon with the French Government as well. It seems that the odyssey of Albanian gold is now nearing its end. In any case, the news published yesterday by the official information media was quite brief. It remains to be determined whether Albania will be obliged, following this, to sign on to the ruling of the Hague Court, which penalized it with 1.8 million dollars for the Corfu Channel incident. “We have finalized with the English side,” Dr. Gramoz Pashko, former deputy prime minister and participant in the negotiations over the gold, tells Gazeta Shqiptare, “the option of settling this obligation through a long-term commercial loan to be granted to Albania by England.” It is not yet known whether this option still stands or whether a new solution may be found. An.Ste. TIRANA - The story of the looting of Albanian gold began in the distant year of 1925. From that time, some of the Albanian gold accumulated in the coffers of the National Bank made its way to Italy. The justification: it was needed to support the monetary circulation reserve. Today, the efforts to trace the ingots and gold coins have been almost entirely clarified. The work invested in documents, invoices and archives over many years by entire groups of historians has succeeded in clarifying every stage of the “golden adventure.” One of them, Professor Iljaz Fishta, a historian of this period and one of the members of the State Commission that dealt with the issue in 1985, tells Gazeta Shqiptare what he has managed to learn over many years of research. Here is the history as reconstructed on the basis of the information he gathered. “From 1925 to 1944, more than 8 billion and 62 million gold francs had arrived in Italy,” says Fishta, “another quantity by way of smuggling. Xhulio Gaudenci himself, director of the Bank of Albania, entered into contact with the ... economists and bandits. There is a document from 1927 that proves this.” The figures for the gold stolen from the Albanians may perhaps never be known. Not a single copy of a letter, not even an invoice or other records concerning this trafficking, exists. Then came Italy's surrender, and with it the “Nazi” phase of Albanian gold. It was precisely then that well-known figures from Nazi circles appeared on the scene, above all Herbert Kappler, the SS major known for his crimes, and the collaborator from Rome, Vishtër. The latter himself directed the top-secret operation by an SS commando that transported the Albanian gold from Rome directly to the Reichsbank in Berlin. Kappler's name appears in the documents concerning the recovery of gold from the deposits; he was known to have taken part in such looting. The weight of the Albanian gold treasure amounted to 2,417 kilograms of pure gold. In the final days of the occupation, in October 1944, the Nazis even took with them the keys to the Bank's treasury in Tirana. According to documents held by Professor Fishta, among the military vehicles withdrawing from Albania, beneath bales of cotton, travelled all the banknotes held in the treasury as well as 13,519 gold napoleons. The Albanian treasury then passed from the cellars of the Reichsbank to an abandoned salt mine. An Allied soldier discovered it entirely by chance. Of the 2,417 kilograms of Albanian gold looted from the Bank in Rome, the Allies found only 1,574. The looting adventure had ended, but the long odyssey of negotiations began. The State [unit] that dealt with this matter in 1985 tells Gëzërin Shqiptar what he was able entire troubled history, based on Italy, Fishta says—a further large quantity had gone there in” Vehbi Frashëri, because of Berisha, and thus a caricature, [said] that the gold passing from Germany to Switzerland [was the subject of a] request that was, of course, rejected. After the conclusion of a cont- [text cut off] ... well-known scholar of this issue, explained—and which had to pay England more than 840 thousand pounds in reparations. Albania

TIRANA - The first attempt to recover the gold began as early as 1944. An Albanian delegation led by Velbi Frashëri had gone to Berlin and had then requested that the gold be transferred from Germany to Switzerland, a request that was reportedly rejected. The exclusion and the Corfu incident in ’46, and the Hague Court, which found Albania guilty—Professor Paskal Milo, a well-known researcher of this issue, explains—meant that it had to pay England more than 840,000 pounds at the time. The event that entered history as “90 ...” came formally onto the scene in 1949 in Paris; that is, the English were concerned ... [the remainder of the source text is garbled and incomplete] ... The Albanians were promised a small compensation, but ... they did not accept. At the beginning of the ’50s, Italy also became involved in this story, putting forward claims to the gold. The case went to an international court, and England won. Later, from 1956 to 1964—the final period during which negotiations with the English were permitted—this is still ... in the documents. At the beginning of the ’70s, Albania asked the UN ... that the gold itself be returned and ... its claims. Later, in the ’80s, a formula emerged ... the English were willing to return the treasure, provided that the Albanians paid only a sum ... for the gold, if ... 2,417 ... pure gold, in the event that such ... [the source text is garbled and incomplete]. The French, by contrast, who had earlier requested ... negotiations ... truly began with the arrival of the compensation package and the English, and later President Berisha's visit followed. These ... ... in Albania, in 1964—to invoice for which, but in the sentence for which... [text cut off] ... all... ... of Albania... [text cut off] ... These prepared today’s agreement “f...”.

The Association Chairman's appeal The appeal of the Association's Chairman “Consumers, beware of expired goods” TIRANA - “Now we all have the opportunity to buy many things through ... [source wording unclear], but at the same time we must be careful, because these goods do not always have the quality we are paying for.” It is Dr. Islam Cani, chairman of the “Albanian Consumer” association, who explains at a press conference the purpose of the organization he heads. It was established in 1991 and now has about 2,000 members in all the country's districts. Completing the legal framework for consumer protection is a practical necessity for Dr. Cani. “The provision of drinking water and electricity, and the application of international standards to the food products supplying our market, cannot be achieved without a legal framework covering food, competition, and the production and distribution of electricity.” However, the governments' failure to provide laws has hindered the protection of Albanian consumers. According to Dr. Cani, there are countless cases in which buyers encounter expired goods—see photo. There have been many cases of bread being sold up to 200 grams underweight, fuel being mixed with water, products being sold as automotive alcohol, and bread being made with flour containing lead. “To prevent all this, the laws already exist; they just need to be enforced,” Dr. Cani appeals, and he also remembers to ask for more support from the representatives of the relevant bodies. In his interview, [he refers to an organization] established in 1960 and present in 80 countries around the world, of which “Albanian Consumer” is also a member.

Photo: Bashakhu

Wage increase? TIRANA - Signs of a rising tide in the trade union movement are on the horizon. The textile workers in Berat seem set to open next week with a hunger strike. After holding several short strikes and talks with government representatives, the 1,200 union members, still without ... [source text unclear], have decided to escalate their economic protest with a hunger strike, supported by many BSP branches in various cities around the country. In recent days, employees of the Albanian Telecommunications company have also announced that they will begin a strike for the same reasons, while the Railway Union has sent a petition to international organizations, in which it describes the harsh economic reality and the difficulties faced by the trade union movement in Albania. The textile workers' decision to begin a hunger strike on Monday was made after their representatives met yesterday in Tirana with Government representatives to discuss their economic demands. According to the union's leaders, “up to now these demands have fallen on deaf ears.” The only change to the hunger strike decision—planned and announced several days ago—is that it will not take place at the workplace and will not involve around 1,200 workers; instead, it will be held at the “Tekstilisti” cinema club and will involve men and women selected from among them. It is understood that the strikers have also notified the police authorities. Monday will also be decision day for the Telecommunications employees. Their representatives will meet with the company's managers. If they do not receive satisfactory answers to their demands for higher wages, improved working conditions, or procedures for privatization, this could light the “fuse” for a strike in this sector as well. Meanwhile, another union, the Railway Union, has sent a petition to various international organizations, European trade unions and diplomatic missions accredited in Albania, protesting the severe economic difficulties faced by its employees and the obstacles confronting the trade union movement in Albania. An.Ste.

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Discipline for Ministers too TIRANA - The Government, too, will have its own regulations. Who will be considered a member of the Council of Ministers, how Government meetings are held, how decisions are made and signed—these and other issues are addressed by the regulations approved a few days ago. The important document aims to place the Government’s work on the basis of defined rules, clearly establishing the relations and obligations of each minister within the Government. For the first time, the creation of Interministerial Committees has also been announced. The regulations provide for the establishment of the Economic Policy Committee, comprising the Minister of Finance, Agriculture, Environment, Transport and Construction, and the Social Policy Committee, comprising the ministers of Education, Labour, Health and Culture. These will be advisory bodies to the Government.

SHKODËR - Mystery surrounds the discovery of a body in Shkodër. Half of it was found on Thursday evening, at around 21:30, in a ditch beside the national road leading to Malësia e Madhe. The body—still unidentified—had been shot in the head. According to well-informed police sources, the unfortunate man had no identification documents on him; the only thing found near the body was an ashtray from a car.

In Krujë KRUJË - They had been stealing and are now being held at the Krujë Police Station. Six people took part in two separate thefts, but they were unable to escape the attention of the police. The first three are young men aged 21–22 from the city of Krujë, accused of stealing cars—a troubling problem in the area over the past two months—while the other three arrested are accused of stealing livestock in the village of Bilc, where they lived. Mu. Ar.

GJIROKASTËR - Kakavija is once again full of Albanian refugees returned from Greece. On Thursday, the busiest border crossing between Albania and Greece once again witnessed the scene of people being sent back. According to information from the crossing, on Thursday the Greek authorities repatriated more than 400 Albanians. The refugees arrived at the border packed into 9 large buses. According to those who were returned, they had all been caught up in a scandalous, large-scale operation by the Greek police, which took place just a few days after a Greek citizen was killed during a clash with young Albanians. Many of those returned claimed that they had even had valid documents. The incident has heightened tensions, and acts of violence against Albanians have also been reported in Greece. In Thessaloniki, a Greek man fired at a group of Albanians, wounding one of them. The Albanian, Sokol Gura, is now out of danger. (ra.ko.)

FROM THE DISTRICTS Shkodër mobilizes against... stray dogs. A recent decision by the municipality of the northern city has established special hunter squads that will begin clearing out domestic animals, which have recently become a very troubling problem for the citizens of Shkodër. To encourage the killing of dogs, the municipality has set a reward. The price for each dog killed: 250 lekë. A similar initiative had been undertaken a few months earlier by the capital’s municipality. It remains to be seen whether the people of Shkodër will achieve the same result in the fight against these troublesome animals. Krujë, checkpoint against traffickers in logs The Forest Police have set up a highly unusual checkpoint along the area by the villages of Krujë to inspect anyone attempting to traffic logs illegally. The checkpoint will monitor loads coming from or heading in several directions: Tirana, Laçi and Burreli. In this way, it has been decided to tighten controls further on the illegal activities of many people who—also taking advantage of the Forest Police’s limited capacity—had managed, more or less at will, to transport timber every day without any meaningful checks on the considerable number of logs that were then sold on the foreign market.

An adventure on the Shkodër–Tirana line TIRANA - Passenger trains, too, have felt the effects of faults in the electric lines, which have even led to almost legendary incidents. The author of this account witnessed one such event just a few days ago. It might have seemed amusing, but in reality it caused distress among passengers on the train travelling from Shkodër to Tirana, which was forced to wait at Budulla station—not for two minutes, as it should have, but for a full 1 hour and 16 minutes. “We can’t leave without first getting permission from Vora station,” the train conductor explained, “but it’s impossible to contact them; there’s no electricity.” Necessity then set minds and feet in motion, and an original idea came to the rescue... One person set off by bicycle to reach Vora. With the two stations several kilometres apart, the messenger was sent to hurry things along for the exasperated passengers: better late than never... Ga.Ma.

KORÇË - They stay in the neutral zone near the border, pretend that their cars have broken down, and then wait until night to bring goods in without paying customs duties. - They stay in the neutral zone near the border, pretend that their cars have broken down, and then wait until night to bring goods in without paying customs duties. They are drivers transporting large quantities of cigarettes and raki from Macedonia, who have tried a particular kind of smuggling. In the darkness of night—always in the neutral zone—the goods are unloaded from the trucks, carried on people’s backs, and taken toward Albanian territory. An insider source at the Korçë Police Commissariat told Gazeta that this kind of activity has been taking place for some time near the village of Goricë, on the shore of Lake Prespa. In this type of smuggling, besides truck drivers, villagers from the surrounding area and police officers serving in that area have also been implicated. Nevertheless, so far no complaint has been filed about this illegal activity.

Description Weight in kg Pure-gold weight Appendix 1: 52 gold bars 578.0095 575.5918 Appendix 2: 82 gold bars 876.2590 803.0721 Appendix 3: 6 gold bars 83.0550 74.7314 Appendix 4: 5 gold bars 41.7535 37.5280 Appendix 5: 48 gold bars 586.4915 583.5590 Appendix 6: 5 gold bars 45.5460 40.9800 Total: 198 gold bars 2,211.1095 2,115.4677 Appendix 7: 26 gold rods 106.9720 96.2748 Appendix 7/b: 2 bags of gold 2.7725 2.4953 Appendix 8: 22 bags of gold coins 138.4305 124.5182 Contents: Francs 430.0400 various gold francs Crowns 20 Austrian gold crowns Rubles 15 Russian gold rubles

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